Sustainable Synthesis of InP Quantum Dots via Rieke-Indium Reduction: Size Control and Ensemble Optical Properties

The aminophosphane-based synthesis of InP quantum dots (QDs) suffers from a significant drawback due to its low atomic efficiency, resulting in the production of three equiv of phosphonium salts as a byproduct for each equivalent of phosphorus atom incorporated into InP QDs. To address this limitation, we propose a novel synthetic approach for the fabrication of InP-QDs, utilizing Rieke-In (In*) as both an indium precursor and a simultaneous reducing agent for the aminophosphanes employed. This method not only enables a more efficient and sustainable synthesis of InP-QDs but also offers excellent size tunability, as demonstrated by the successful synthesis of green-emitting InP/GaP/ZnS-QDs. The observed remarkable emission quantum yield (QY) exceeding 40% and a narrow full-width at half-maximum (FWHM) of 50 nm further underscore the merits of this new synthetic route. The combination of good QY and precise size control makes this approach particularly intriguing and promising for various optoelectronic applications.